Einstein, Albert. Albert Einstein (1879-1955) - photo 1
Einstein, Albert. Albert Einstein (1879-1955) - photo 2

Albert Einstein (1879-1955)

Starting price
£ 3 000
Auction dateClassic
09.12.2020 00:00UTC +01:00
Auctioneer
CHRISTIE'S
Event location
United Kingdom, London
Archive
The auction is completed. No bids can be placed anymore.
Archive
ID 470230
Lot 61 | Albert Einstein (1879-1955)
Albert Einstein (1879-1955)

Statement on Schroedinger's unified field theory. 1947

EINSTEIN, Albert (1879-1955). Typed statement on Erwin Schroedinger’s proposed solution for the Unified Field Theory, n.p. [Princeton], n.d. [January/February 1947].



In English. 1 ½ pages, 279 x 216mm (acidified, tears to lower margin). Stapled to a typed letter signed by Einstein’s secretary, Helen Dukas, to Jacob Landau of the Overseas News Agency, 112 Mercer Street, Princeton, 18 February 1947 ('Professor Einstein asked me to send you the enclosed statement in answer to your letter of today. He made this statement for the press generally when inquiries about his opinion concerning Professor Schroedinger's new theory where [sic] made').



'Like the coup d’états in some of the smaller unstable republics': Einstein's scathing criticism of Schroedinger's proposed solution to the unified field theory, marking the end of their friendship and collaboration. Einstein prepares the ground for his critique of Schroedinger with a general statement on the current position of theoretical physics, noting that its foundations are as yet undetermined: 'We are striving to find first a usable (logically simple) basis', and this effort does not proceed, as the layman might expect, on the basis of generalisation from experimental facts but rather 'one attempts to start from freely chosen conceptual elements, and to form from them a theoretical system in accordance with the principle of greatest possible logical simplicity', which one can then examine for its usefulness. The search for a unified field theory is still very much at the theoretical stage, and 'far from a stage in which such an examination can be carried out ... This is a purely mathematical formal effort'. He then turns to Schroedinger's new theory which he underlines must be considered as one of these mathematical 'efforts': 'It can therefore be judged only on the basis of its mathematical-formal qualities, but not from the point of view of "truth"'. Einstein goes on to make a notably sarcastic criticism of Schroedinger's presentation of his new theory: 'It seems undesirable to me to present such preliminary attempts to the public in any form. It is even worse when the impression is created that one is dealing with definite discoveries concerning physical reality. Such communiqués given in sensational terms give the lay public misleading ideas about the character of research. The reader gets the impression that every five minutes there is a revolution in science, somewhat like the coup d’états in some of the smaller unstable republics', whereas in reality theoretical science is a gradual process over generations.



Schroedinger had announced his solution to the unified field theory problem at a lecture on 27 January 1947 with considerable fanfare, including a press conference at which he declared 'The nearer one approaches truth, the simpler things become. I have the honour of laying before you today the keystone of the Affine Field Theory and thereby the solution of a 30 year problem: the competent generalization of Einstein's great theory of 1915'. In fact, Schroedinger's theory was the result of several years of close collaboration and discussion with Einstein on the subject, and Einstein was deeply offended by his colleague's unexpected and, as it proved, ill-founded declaration of victory, criticising it publicly in the present statement with the damning phrase 'preliminary attempt' and in private breaking off their correspondence.



Einstein's statement is apparently formally unpublished: not in Boni, Russ, Laurence, A Bibliographical Checklist and Index to the Published Writings of Albert Einstein (1960). Extremely rare: no other copy recorded at auction.

Address of auction CHRISTIE'S
8 King Street, St. James's
SW1Y 6QT London
United Kingdom
Preview
09.12.2020 – 09.12.2020
Phone +44 (0)20 7839 9060
Email
4FQ.AYGKAGLUQ@FO3G@
Buyer Premium see on Website
Conditions of purchaseConditions of purchase

More from Creator

Albert Einstein (1879-1955)
Albert Einstein (1879-1955)
£12 000
Albert Einstein (1879-1955)
Albert Einstein (1879-1955)
£12 000
Albert Einstein (1879-1955)
Albert Einstein (1879-1955)
£1 500
Albert Einstein (1879-1955)
Albert Einstein (1879-1955)
£1 500
Einstein, Albert. Theoretischer Physiker.
Einstein, Albert. Theoretischer Physiker.
€1 000

Related terms

Frequently asked questions

First of all, you should register to be able to purchase at auction. After confirming your email address, enter your personal information in your user profile, such as your first name, last name, and mail address. Choose a lot from the upcoming auction and the maximum amount you want to place on it. After confirmation of your choice, we will send your application by e-mail to the appropriate auction house. If the auction house accepts a request, it will participate in the auction. You can view the current status of a bid at any time in your personal account in the "Bids" section.
Auctions are performed by auction houses and each of the auction houses describes their terms of auction. You can see the texts in the section "Auction information".
The results of the auction are published within a few days after the end of the auction. In the top menu of the site, find the tab "Auctions". Click on it and you will be on the auction catalog page, where you can easily find the category "Results". After opening it, select the desired auction from the list, enter and view the current status of the interested lot.
The information about the auction winners is confidential. The auction winner will receive a direct notification from the auction house responsible with instructions for further action: an invoice for payment and the manner in which the goods will be received.
Each of the auction houses has its own payment policy for the won lots. All auction houses accept bank transfers, most of them accept credit card payments. In the near future you will find detailed information for each case in the section "Auction information" on the page of the auction catalog and the lot.
Shipment of the won lot depends on its size. Small items can be delivered by post. Larger lots are sent by courier. Employees of the auction houses will offer you a wide range to choose from.
No. The archive serves as a reference for the study of auction prices, photographs and descriptions of works of art.